Rewrite
by Special FX
Summary: Chrom and company never find an unconscious Robin in the middle of that field on that fateful day. Instead, during the height of the Plegian-Ylisse war, Robin is found and taken captive by Ylisse soldiers. Mistaken for a Plegian spy, our tactician is imprisoned as the war continues to rage on without him.


**Chapter 1**

* * *

"Could patrol duty get any duller Rowan?"

The guardsman sighed as he continued walking alongside his partner on their designated patrol route.

"Doubt it."

The man known as Rowan continued to fiddle with the lantern he was carrying in boredom as the two men continued down King's road. The dull glow from his lantern the only source of light as the fog continued to grow thicker, covering what little one could see of the moon.

"Exactly what the hell are we patrolling for anyway? No brigand in his right mind would get near a hundred meters to Fort Boltan."

Rowan could only stare at his partner in disbelief as he contemplated whether or not he should smash his lantern over the top of his head. Probably shouldn't, wouldn't want to have to continue patrolling in the dark after all.

"Are you an idiot Arthur? Are we not at war with Plegia? Perhaps we're, oh I don't know, maybe patrolling the area for any signs of Plegians?"

Arthur merely scoffed at his partner's sarcastic remarks as he took a drink out of his canteen. The two had been walking for at least an hour.

"Right, because we need people standing out here to spot an army probably three times the size of Ylisse. We could be doing the same thing on top of the castle walls with the only difference being that we would be next to a nice warm fire instead of out here, freezing our damn asses off."

Rowan sighed, out of all the people the captain could have assigned him with, of course with his rotten luck he would get paired up with Arthur. Arthur had made quite the name for himself in Fort Boltan, the man that never knew when to shut up.

"Why don't you go back to the castle then? See what the captain says when you tell her about your idea for "patrolling" on atop the castle walls."

"What a wonderful idea Rowan! I might as well just throw my whole paycheck into the river as well!"

The sarcasm didn't go unnoticed. Rowan was seriously considering knocking him out and continuing his patrol duty in peace before he stopped dead in his tracks. Something had caught his eye.

"Hey, you see that over there Arthur?"

Arthur turned his head as his eyes followed the direction that Rowans finger was pointing, off of King's Road.

"Aye, I see him. Poor bastard probably got mugged and gutted by some brigand."

Walking over there, Arthur kneeled down beside the unconscious man as Rowan stood off to the side, keeping watch.

"Well now, I take that back, he's not dead that's for sure. He's got a sword and tome on him too", he continued to look through the man's belongings before he frowned. "Damn, how's he not have any gold on him?"

Rowan walked over and stood next to the unconscious man, examining his clothes.

"Those robes… Definitely Plegian made."

Arthur looked up at Rowan, eyebrow raised.

"You saying he a Plegian?"

Rowan folded his arms across his chest as he furrowed his brow.

"I'm saying it's a possibility. We should probably take him back to the castle"

Arthur's eyes lit up as quickly he picked up the man and threw him over his shoulder.

"To hell with probably, looks like thanks to this fella we're going to get to sleep earlier tonight! Heh, maybe the captain might give us a reward for capturing a Plegian."

Rowan merely shook his head as he grabbed the man's sword and spell book before briskly jogging to catch up to his companion.

* * *

Robin began to stir as he grudgingly forced his eyes to open. As he got his bearings and looked around, he found himself inside a prison cell of some sort. As he tried to get up, realization hit him, he was in chains! His arms were linked together along with his ankles. While he could stand up, he found that it was a struggle to even just walk. With a sigh, Robin sat back down onto the dusty cot that he had found himself unconscious on top of merely minutes ago. Resting his head on the rather uncomfortable stone wall, Robin looked around his cell. There was the cot that he was sitting on along with a table and a chair. Other than that, the cell was rather bland, although that was probably to be expected for a prison cell after all. As he closed his eyes and began to ponder about his unique predicament, he realized that he could not recall anything at all other than his name! Well there was other one thing, another name, Chrom.

"I see that you're awake now."

Shaken out of his thoughts, Robin looked for the source of the rather feminine voice and found it standing outside the steel bars of his cell. Red hair; that was the first thought that came into his mind as he gazed at the woman speaking to him.

"Where am I?"

As those raspy words left Robin's mouth, he realized how thirsty he was. He must have not had anything to drink for quite some time.

"You are currently in Ylisse's Fort Boltan"

The stoic look on her face never changed as her red eyes kept careful watch on his movements. She regarded him as if he were some sort of dangerous criminal. Robin decided to choose his next words carefully, least he become the next victim of that rather dangerous looking lance that she was holding.

"I see… You wouldn't happen to know why I have been imprisoned, would you?"

Ignoring his question, the woman reached into her pockets with her free hand and retrieved a key. Unlocking the door to his cell the woman motioned for Robin to step outside. Raising an eyebrow, Robin decided to oblige, seeing as he didn't exactly have much of a choice at the moment. After a curt nod, that he assumed was of approval, she motioned for him to follow her.

"The captain would like to see you now."

Confusion evident on Robins face, he decided to simply listen to the woman and followed behind her before she came to an abrupt stop, causing him to almost run into her. Turning around the woman pointed the tip of her lance at him and glared.

"Oh and if you try anything…"

Robin gulped and slowly nodded as the lance just inches away from piercing his throat was lifted away. Quickly turning around, the woman picked up her pace. Robin struggled to follow her pace; his ankles were chained together after all. As the two walked past the many doors in the hallways of Fort Boltan for what seemed like hours to Robin, the woman had finally stopped. Opening the door that she had stopped in front of, she motioned for Robin to step inside. As he stepped inside the room, the red haired woman followed suit before quickly shutting the door behind them. Inside the room, another woman was sitting down on a chair in front of a wooden table.

"Thank you, Cordelia. You may leave us now."

With a curt nod, the woman known as Cordelia stepped outside, leaving Robin in the room with the other woman, who unlike Cordelia, did not share the same vibrant hair color. Instead her hair was a dark brown, in contrast. The woman, who had a rather commanding aura around her, folded her arms over her breastplate and motioned for Robin to sit down on the other chair, facing her. He obliged.

"Now, what is your name sir?"

"My name is..." A Pause. "Robin." He believed that was his name. Although at this point, he wasn't quite too sure.

The stern look on the woman's face never wavered as she kept quiet for a moment before speaking once more.

"I see. I am Eliza, the commanding officer here. Now Robin, would you like to tell me why exactly a Plegian would be found sleeping outside the walls of Fort Boltan?"

Robin merely gave the woman a blank look. Truth be told, he had no idea what she was talking about. Fort Boltan was the castle that he was currently sitting inside, he had gathered that much so far, but what was a Plegian? Along with that he had no clue why he was found sleeping outside; he couldn't remember a damn thing!

"I… I don't know."

The look on her face finally changed, it became a frown. That's probably not a good sign.

"You... don't know?" A questioning tone.

Looking her in the eye, he decided that he might as well be completely honest and explain everything.

"I… think I've lost my memory. I can't seem to recall anything other than my own name."

The woman snorted.

"Can't say I've heard that one before. Isn't it so terribly convenient that a Plegian spy would suddenly have amnesia as he was captured by enemy forces?"

Robin raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"But it's the truth!"

"So you say."

Robin frowned.

"What kind of so called spy would be taking a nap outside the damn enemy fortress!?"

The woman smirked at this.

"Apparently you."

He sighed in response. Things did not look like they were going to get anywhere anytime soon.

"How can you even just assume that I am a spy? For all you know, I could just be a farmer or a merchant that happened to be from Plegia. Does the Exalt simply enjoy imprisoning the innocent?"

Eliza's eyes narrowed as she glared daggers at the man.

"Watch how you speak about the Exalt, Plegian. In case you've forgotten, you're inside our walls now", with a dangerous glint in her eyes, Eliza leaned over the table and grabbed him by the collar. "If I were you, I would take that advice to heart while you're in here."

She held that position for a couple seconds, before letting go and sitting back down. Robin began to fix his collar.

"You didn't answer the question."

She merely pointed her thumb behind her, at a shelf on the other side of the room. Robin could see a myriad of weapons laying on and around it.

"I highly doubt a farmer would carry around a sword and a tome."

Seeing this, Robin nodded. He could be cooperative. With this new found fact, perhaps he really was a Plegian spy before he lost his memory.

"I see. That does make it seem like I could be a Plegian spy or soldier doesn't it?"

He continued to nod as he cupped his chin, looking as if he was deep in thought.

"But, what exactly are you trying to accomplish with my imprisonment? I most likely have no knowledge of whatever it is you want to question me on, seeing as I've lost my memory."

"If you don't want to talk then fine, don't talk."

Robin's eyes narrowed. A nasty thought came up.

"Are you going to torture me then? A man cannot tell you something even he himself does not know."

This time it was the woman's turn to sigh.

"Enough with the acting Robin, you know as well as any other Plegian that the Exalt forbids that practice."

Getting up, the woman walked over to the side of the room, and opened a drawer, taking out a scroll. Tossing it at him, Robin snatched it out of the air and opened it. On the scroll was what seemed to be a list of names. He looked at the woman for an explanation.

"Those are all Ylisse soldier's that Plegia has taken prisoner."

Ah, so that's why he was being kept prisoner.

"I see now. You would like to establish an exchange of prisoners. And if it turns out that I'm not actually a Plegian spy, then I would be released, am I correct?"

She nodded in response.

"But there is one problem here. If it turns out that I am not actually a Plegian spy, then you would have imprisoned a perfectly innocent individual for no reason whatsoever."

Another nod.

"I understand that is indeed a possibility. But as you may well know," She paused for a brief moment before continuing again. "Or may not know, depending on whether or not you are telling the truth, with the recent assassination attempts on the Exalt, we cannot take any chances. Those that have the ability to use magic are rare. Those that have the ability to use the tome and the sword? As you can guess, they are even rarer. And it just so happens that you were carrying sword and tome when we found you."

Robin sighed. Now he understood. A Plegian carrying both a sword and a tome in Ylisse could definitely be taken as a threat, with the war going on.

"Very well, I understand. Although I am not happy about it."

The woman looked at Robin with an apologetic look this time.

"I'm sorry. If it indeed turns out you are telling the truth, I will personally take responsibility and see that you are compensated."

* * *

After what felt like hours, Robin was finally released from that never ending cesspool of words being exchanged. Getting interrogated wasn't exactly the most enjoyable thing in the world, especially when you're someone that's lost their memory recently. He sighed as he continued walking with the red haired woman back to his cell. Although the interrogation did actually some positives about it, he was able to pick out some important information here and there. Such as Plegia and Ylisse's current state of war.

The walk back was excruciatingly exhausting to say the least. The chains were beginning to cut into his skin as well. It didn't help that the red haired woman, Cordelia, was walking at an extremely quick pace either. It wouldn't have been a problem if he could move one foot more than a few inches from the other. But alas, here he was looking like a fool trying to keep up with the pace of the red head. As the two finally made it back to the cell, the woman unlocked the door and Robin flew face first into the cot, not caring how dusty or dirty it was. Closing the cell door, the woman quickly left. After rolling around for a while, Robin turned face up and was now staring at the barren stone ceiling.

A small grumble could be heard from his stomach.

He didn't realize this during the interrogation but now that he had the time to himself, he found that he was extremely hungry, as well as thirsty. With a sigh he sat back up and rested his back against the wall. They could have at least taken off the chains. It's not as if he would have been able to escape anyhow. Looking out the barred window, Robin could see the moon in the night sky. Hearing footsteps, Robin turned his attention away from the window back to his cell. Someone was coming, and that someone was bringing food! He could smell the warm fragrance from here.

"I've brought your supper, prisoner."

Ouch, being referred to as prisoner seem to have killed what little excitement he had developed in anticipation for his meal. Go figure it would be the red haired woman bringing his meal as well. Expertly holding up the trey with one hand, Cordelia reached into her pocket and took out his cell key, unlocking it. Walking into his cell, she put the trey on the table and walked over to him, in front of his cot. Robin gave her a confused look.

"The captain said I should remove those."

Ah, the chains. Robin nodded in response and allowed her to unlock them. With the chains now gone, Robin began to stretch his limbs.

"Thank you."

"It was simply an order that I followed, there is no need for your thanks."

She had answered with indifference. With a small smile, Robin sat down on his chair and began to eat.

"Nevertheless," taking a tiny nibble from the bread, before frowning at the taste. "You have my thanks."

Cordelia remained silent as she stood diligently beside his cell door, stoic as ever. Evidently, watching Robin eat was unsurprisingly boring. Eventually, perhaps due to boredom, her curiosity got to her.

"Prisoner, were you telling the truth?"

Looking up at her after a couple bites of the rather stale bread, he raised an eyebrow.

"I didn't take you for the eavesdropping type. You seem much too serious for that."

Frowning in response. She replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

"The door's here aren't exactly soundproof."

Finishing his bread, Robin began to start on the soup. It didn't taste much better. But, then again, he probably shouldn't have had high hopes towards food meant for prisoners.

"I see."

A couple minutes ticked by, the only sounds that could be heard from the cell were coming from Robin slurping on his soup. Finishing the last drop, he put the bowl back on the table and looked over towards Cordelia.

"In response to your question, yes I was telling the truth. I truly have no memory of my time before waking up in this cell."

She folded her arms over her breastplate in response.

"That's a little too convenient don't you think?"

He snorted in retaliation.

"Hah, your captain said the same thing."

She continued to observe him, a calculating look in those ruby red eyes of hers.

"It is understandable though, is it not?"

He sighed.

"Honestly, if I were really a spy, I'd have to be the worst spy in all the kingdoms. For one thing, from what I've heard about how I was found, why would I be sleeping out in the open in my supposed "enemy" territory? Not exactly the smartest thing to do."

Her lips twitched a little.

"No one said you were a good spy, nor a smart one for that matter."

He gave her an incredulous look.

"You can't be serious."

A twitch, followed by another, and then finally, a crack in the mask. She smiled. At least someone was amused.

"No, I'm not serious. I do find it odd; you're not exactly the spitting image of a spy after all," Cordelia allowed herself a small laugh at Robins expensive before turning her expression into a serious one once again. "I'm sorry, but that doesn't mean we can just release you yet either. With the war going on, we have to make certain that you say is indeed the truth."

Robin sighed as he stood up and headed for his cot. He was quite frankly, exhausted.

"I see."

Lying down on the little cot with his back facing Cordelia, he closed his eyes. As much as he enjoyed discussing whether or not he was actually a Plegian spy with his red haired warden, he simply didn't have the energy to continue. After a brief moment, he heard the woman's footsteps as she began to leave, taking the trey and the chains with her. As she was about to close the cell door, a soft tired voice echoed through the room.

"Robin."

Cordelia stopped. She raised an eyebrow, confusion evident on her face.

"What?"

This time, the voice returned with a bit more vitality.

"My name. It's Robin, not "prisoner"."

She blinked. And then she nodded.

"I see… You may call me Cordelia, Robin."

As she turned her back to the cell and began to leave, Robin spoke once more, although it was soft, almost like a whisper. He was beginning to fall asleep.

"Good night, Cordelia."

Another blink, before a small smile graced her lips.

"Good night, Robin."

* * *

Author's Notes:

I've had this idea in my head regarding Cordelia and her time before joining the Shepherds, on the outskirts of the Ylisse border for a while now and since I've had a lot of free time lately, I figured I might as well turn the idea into an actual story. I've always wanted to write a Fire Emblem story either way. Although, the first chapter turned out shorter than I would have liked it to be. Anyway reviews would be great.


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